: a rigid piece that transmits and modifies force or motion when forces are applied at two points and it turns about a third
specifically: a rigid bar used to exert a pressure or sustain a weight at one point of its length by the application of a force at a second and turning at a third on a fulcrum
b
: a projecting piece by which a mechanism (see mechanismsense 1) is operated or adjusted
Noun
They used their money as a lever to gain political power. Verb
He levered the rock out of the hole.
the workers used crowbars to lever the heavy stone block into its new position
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Noun
The Emergent Campus model gives us a strategic lever to influence economic development at a level where most colleges don't traditionally engage.—Alison Griffin, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025 Today's bicycles all have indexed shifting, in which the levers and derailleurs snap precisely from one gear to the next.—New Atlas, 9 Sep. 2025
Verb
What else is new when you’re levered to China and charge more than anyone else?—Jim Cramer, CNBC, 14 Aug. 2025 Enter bitcoin treasury companies – a new wave of public equities seeking a far more explicit and truly levered connection to bitcoin’s price.—Edan Yago, Forbes.com, 31 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for lever
Word History
Etymology
Noun and Verb
Middle English, from Anglo-French levier, lever, from lever to raise, from Latin levare, from levis light in weight — more at light
: a stiff bar for applying a force (as for lifting a weight) at one point of its length by effort at a second point and turning at a third point on a fulcrum
Middle English lever "bar for prying," from early French levier (same meaning), from lever (verb) "to raise," from Latin levare "to raise" — related to elevate
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